Pignoli Cookies
Say it with me, “PIN-YOL-E”! Translation, the most delicious holiday cookies you won’t be able to get enough of this year.
Pignoli cookies are made with only five ingredients so they are incredibly easy to make. They come from southern Italy and if you’ve ever gotten an Italian pastry box, these are bound to be in it. These cookies are insanely soft and chewy, but they are studded with golden pine nuts on top to give it a delicious crunch and nuttiness.
An awesome thing about them is that they are naturally gluten free! You won’t be using any flour in these. Instead, you use almond paste. I’m not even quite sure what else almond paste is used for besides these cookies. It’s basically ground up almonds mixed with sugar to form a delicious silky paste. This is what gives these cookies their chewy goodness.
Here’s what you’ll need to make these amazing pignoli cookies:
almond paste
pine nuts
white sugar
powdered sugar (or confectioner’s sugar)
egg whites
After beating together the almond paste and sugar, you will slowly add in the powdered sugar and mix them well. You’ll add in a couple egg white and this will form your sticky dough. Roll them into balls, dip the tops in the other half of the egg whites, and then into the pine nuts to get them to stick on. Flatten them out slightly, bake, and enjoy! These will stay good for a couple days just wrapped and left out on the counter or in a cookie tin, so make them Christmas eve and enjoy them through your holidays!
Pignoli Cookies
(makes 20 cookies)
ingredients:
12 oz almond paste
1/2 cup white sugar
1 cup powdered sugar (or confectioner’s sugar)
4 egg whites
1 1/2 cup pine nuts
directions:
preheat oven to 325 F.
with your paddle attachment, mix together the almond paste and white sugar until crumbles form.
while mixing, slowly add in the powdered sugar. mix for another 3 minutes.
add in 2 egg whites and mix until well combined. dough will be sticky.
get your greased parchment paper lined baking sheet ready. in one small bowl, add in your pine nuts. in a separate small bowl, add 2 egg whites. roll a 1 inch ball of dough into a circle, dip the top into the egg white and then into the bowl of pine nuts. lay it on the baking sheet and press down slightly with your hand to flatten it out a little. continue until you use all the dough.
bake 15-18 minutes. let cool for 5-10 minutes before eating. you can top them with powdered sugar or eat them as is!
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